What is AI video inpainting?
AI video inpainting is an editing technique that uses artificial intelligence to remove something from a moving video, then regenerate whatever's left behind so the result looks like the original footage. The term comes from photo editing, where inpainting fills in a missing or unwanted part of a still image. Video inpainting does the same thing, but across every frame of a moving clip, not just one, which is what separates it from a single-image edit.
If you've used Generative Fill in Photoshop, the core idea will feel familiar as a lighter comparison, though video has to stay visually consistent from one frame to the next in a way a single photo edit never has to. Before generative video models existed, fixing a shot like this meant sending it to a VFX editor for frame-by-frame rotoscoping, a slow, specialized process that could take hours for a clip that runs only a few seconds.
Common uses for AI video inpainting
Video inpainting covers a few distinct jobs:
- Object removal. Clearing a stray boom mic that dips into frame, a visible rig or reflection, text overlays that don't belong in the shot, or a passerby who walked through the background.
- Object insertion. Adding a prop, an accessory, or set dressing into an existing shot, matched to the scene's perspective and lighting so it looks like it was filmed there.
- Scene restyling. Keeping a subject exactly as filmed while changing the environment around them, useful for testing different backdrops or settings without a reshoot.
All three rely on the same underlying capability, and inside Runway, the same model. Aleph 2.0 identifies a region of the frame, understands what should replace it, and keeps that replacement consistent as the camera and subject move. A social media creator cleaning a logo out of a borrowed clip, a small brand testing three backdrop options for the same product shot, and a video editor removing a boom mic from an interview all do versions of the same task, just with different goals.
How video inpainting works, and why it's harder than a single photo
Most tools approach video inpainting in three steps:
- Masking: paint over the object or region to remove on the first frame.
- Tracking: the model follows that masked area through the rest of the clip's motion.
- Generation: a diffusion model fills the masked area frame by frame, using the surrounding footage for lighting, texture, and perspective.
With Aleph 2.0, those three steps collapse into one: describe what to remove, "remove the trash can," for example, and the model detects it, tracks it, and reconstructs the frame automatically.
This is technically harder than editing a single photo because of consistency. A still image only has to look right once. Video has to look right in every frame, and stay consistent between them: no flickering, no warping, no reconstructed background that subtly shifts shape a few frames later. Camera movement adds another layer of difficulty, since a pan, zoom, or shake means the model has to keep tracking the same region as it moves. Lighting changes across a clip, an object briefly reappearing after being blocked by something else, and motion blur around fast-moving subjects all make the reconstruction harder to hold together across dozens or hundreds of frames. Temporal consistency is the real bottleneck.
How to remove an object from a video in Runway, without masking
With Runway, you can remove an object from a video using Aleph 2.0, without drawing a mask or tracking anything by hand. Upload the clip, describe what you want gone, and Aleph 2.0 identifies it, tracks it across the motion in the clip, and reconstructs what should be behind it in a single pass.
For broader edits, like restyling the environment around a subject, inserting a prop into an existing shot, or swapping out a background entirely, Runway's AI video editor applies the same Aleph 2.0 model across a whole scene while protecting the person or object in focus.
| Tool | Workflow |
|---|---|
| Adobe Firefly / Photoshop + Premiere Pro | Export a frame, mask it in Photoshop, re-import, track camera movement by hand |
| Imagine.Art | Upload footage, draw a mask, generate the replacement |
| OpenArt (SwitchX model) | Masking-based workflow, positioned as an alternative to After Effects or Nuke |
| Wan2.1 / ComfyUI | Open-source, manual mask painting plus an auto-tracking setup |
| Pika Pikadditions | Mask-based object insertion |
| Viddo | Multi-model aggregator (includes Runway Gen-4), manual masking interface |
| Runway | Describe what to remove with Aleph 2.0, no mask, no manual tracking |
Not the same as generative fill for video
AI video inpainting and generative fill for video get used interchangeably, but they solve opposite problems. Inpainting removes something from footage, an object, a person, a logo, and reconstructs what's behind it. Generative fill adds to footage, extending edges or changing aspect ratio, most often to fit a different platform. They often show up in the same project, expand the frame first, then clean up what's left in it, but they aren't the same tool or the same prompt.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to manually mask or track an object to remove it from a video?
No, not with Runway. Describe what you want gone, select Aleph 2.0 as your model, and it detects the object and reconstructs the frame automatically with no mask, no manual tracking. That's different from most other tools, which still require you to paint over the object by hand and track it yourself if the camera moves.
Is Runway's Inpainting tool still available?
Yes. AI video inpainting is fully supported in Runway today, it's just no longer the manual, mask-based process the old video project editor used. Runway retired that older "Inpainting" tool on July 30, 2026. Today, the same capability lives without a mask in the Remove from Video app or Agent 2.0 for object, person, and logo removal, and in Runway's video editor for broader scene edits. Simply select Aleph 2.0 as your model.
What's the difference between AI video inpainting and generative fill for video?
Inpainting removes or replaces something already inside the frame. Generative fill adds to the frame, most often extending edges or changing aspect ratio. Both rely on the same underlying capability: generating new pixels that stay consistent across every frame, just pointed in opposite directions.
Is AI video inpainting free to use?
With Aleph 2.0, Remove from Video has a limited free tier to test the feature, though longer or higher-resolution clips typically need a paid plan since it's a heavier, frame-by-frame process than a single photo edit. More broadly, it depends on the tool, most platforms in this space work the same way.
Can I remove an object from a video without Photoshop or After Effects?
Yes. The export-to-Photoshop-and-back workflow is only necessary if you're using a tool that doesn't handle video natively. Runway's Remove from Video runs entirely inside one timeline, no exporting a frame, no separate photo editor, no re-importing.
Ready to try it without the mask? Remove your first object with Aleph 2.0.
Related: Generative Fill for Video · Remove Objects From Video With AI · Aleph 2.0
